ProPlanner

Dive Table Generating Software Programs: ProPlanner 1998

by Gary L. Taylor, Technical IT, et al

The newest update to ProPlanner is out. It has many new features which qualify it as a major improvement over the previous edition. Since it has been some time since my last review of this software, I will, for the sake of our new readers, cover most of the features and specifications of ProPlanner.

The algorithm used by ProPlanner is the Bühlmann ZHL-16. This model has 16 tissue compartments. The nitrogen half times range between 4.0 to 635.0 minutes. The helium half times range between 1.51 to 240.03 minutes.

The program will make calculations for altitudes with surface pressures ranging from 1,400 mBar to 0 mBar. Although the program will calculate to 0 mBar, the Bühlmann algorithm was only tested to 11,550 feet (3,500 meters) above sea level.

Depth Ranges Covered:

Air (70 meters) 220 feet

Nitrox (70 meters) 220 feet

Trimix (200 meters) 640 feet

Nitrox RB (300 meters) 970 feet

Heliox RB (300 meters) 970 feet

Oxygen Toxicity Caculations:

CNS % is based on the IANTD methodology of using the NOAA limits.

Pulmonary toxicity is based on the REPEX method:

(1bar PPO2 for 1 minute = approx. 1 OTU)

CNS timer reduction 1:2 below 0.5 bar PPO2

Depth Safety Factor:

(Depth x 1.03) + 1 meter

Ascent Rate:

Fixed at 33 feet or 10 meters per minute.

System Requirements:

Will operate on 086 system or higher.

DOS based program

Requires only 305 K of memory

Some New Features:

ProPlanner now has back-edit and re-edit features. These enable the diver to change previously entered data for a particular dive plan. The diver may now quickly calculate alternate times and depths to generate a set of dive tables that allow for some variances.

There has been an additional help line added at the bottom of the screen display.

The deco stops can be extended to allow for reduced deco at subsequent stops or to complete deco in deeper water.

Units:

ProPlanner will display units in either meters or feet.

Saving Dives:

ProPlanner allows any dive or series of dives to be titled and saved to disc.

Restore/Review Functions:

These functions allow several features to be accessed:

1. Mission creating. To add dives to a pre-planned dive sequence, the diver recalls the planned dive via this function.

2. This function also allows for a printout of the decompression schedule.

3. This function also allows the diver to calculate total gas volume requirements for the selected dive.

Safety Factor:

For each 5% entered as a safety factor, the inert gas component in the mix is increased by 1%.

Atmospheric Pressure:

This function allows the diver to adjust for major changes in the surface atmospheric pressure (i.e. - diving above sea level). The adjustment is entered in mBars.

Breathing Rate:

The diver enters his/her RMV. This is then used in the gas volume calculations.

Cylinder Filling:

For Nitrox and Trimix dives, this function allows you to enter the fill pressure of a cylinder, the percentage of each gas, and use partial pressure mathematics to calculate the fill pressures of each gas.

Another function allows you to enter an Equivalent Narcosis Depth, PPO2 target and dive depth. Gas percentages will then be calculated.

There is an option for doing cylinder re-mix calculations.

Last Stops:

There have been some new options added to this feature. This feature allows the final stop sequence to be performed at 20 feet (6 meters), 15 feet (4.5 meters), or 10 feet (3 meters).

Time Of Day:

This feature allows for the mission start time to be entered and will calculate the time at which the dive mission will end.

The software runs all three of the following timeline loops on the printout:

1) Bottom Time & Time @ Stops

2) Total Run Time - Time from leaving the surface to the end of each stop.

3) Deco Time - Time from leaving the bottom to the end of each stop. Gas Optimize: New Feature

Gas Optimize allows the Partial Pressure of Oxygen of the open circuit mix to be kept within a specified range with an upper and lower default range.

This feature also allows the diver to enter 10 of his/her most commonly used gas mixes. The plan screen feature then will automatically select the gases as their depth range is reached during the plan.

The updated ProPlanner deserves serious consideration by anyone wanting to generate custom tables for any particular dive mission. It will generate tables from the easiest of recreational dives to the most serious of technical dive missions.

I would like to thank Kevin Gurr for his input and information about ProPlanner. As well as the "Little Elf" at IANTD Headquarters who made sure I had a copy of the latest update just in time to get this article out. ProPlanner is available through your nearest IANTD Facility, through your IANTD Instructor, or by calling IANTD Headquarters.

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